UNLV: Flash or Substance?

Las Vegas - an iconic city that houses moments of euphoric achievement and catastrophic loss.

Live and die by the dice.

Sin City sat silent for a long time in the sports genre, absent of any NFL, MLB, NHL, NBA, and WNBA franchises.

The UNLV Rebels were the biggest show in town.

Move over, David Copperfield.

Basketball

During the 1980s, Runnin’ Rebel basketball was flying up and down the court, competing with the best of the best.

Legendary head coach Jerry Tarkanian made the NCAA Tournament 12 times during his tenure.

Four trips to the Final Four.

And one magical national championship in 1990.

In that title game, they defeated Mike Krzyzewski - “Coach K” - and the Duke Blue Devils by 30 points, 103-73.

That margin remains the record for the largest defeat in a national championship game at the Division One level.

Larry Johnson, Greg Anthony, Stacey Augmon, and Anderson Hunt all went on to play in the NBA and have lengthy careers.

That...is the flash of what UNLV basketball can be at its glass-shattering peak.

But the substance of a consistent program on the hardwood has yet to be created and solidified.

In the 12 years between the tenures of Tarkanian and Lon Kruger, UNLV appeared in just two NCAA Tournaments.

Kruger managed to bring them back to some form of relevancy, reaching four tourneys during his seven years in Las Vegas.

After that, it has been crickets in a city that has gotten busier and busier with the sports industry.

Dave Rice: Two NCAA Tournaments in five years.

Marvin Menzies: Zero NCAA Tournaments in three years.

T.J. Otzelberger: Zero NCAA Tournaments in two years.

Kevin Kruger: Zero NCAA Tournaments in three years.

A combination of a quick trigger by the athletic department and lofty expectations by boosters has resulted in constant turnover that is never good for any department.

With the hiring of former Georgia Tech coach Josh Pastner, the transfer portal has morphed into a vital mechanism that bring in talent quickly.

This offseason, UNLV has brought in...

• SF Naas Cunningham via Alabama
• PF Ladji Dembele via Iowa
• PG Dravyn Gibbs-Lawhorn via Illinois
• C Emmanuel Stephen via Arizona
• PF Kimani Hamilton via High Point
• G Al Green via Louisiana Tech
• G Myles Che via UC Irvine
• G Howard Fleming Jr. via Texas-Rio Grande Valley

If you are counting at home, that is eight new players entering the Runnin’ Rebel program via the portal.

With the Mountain West losing basketball contenders San Diego State, Colorado State, Utah State, and Boise State after next season, there will be ample room for another program to rise and compete with New Mexico, Nevada, and newcomer Grand Canyon.

Only time will tell if the hiring of Pastner is a return to the flash that took this basketball entity to unforeseen heights in its heyday or if the lacking substance that has plagued them for more than a decade will continue...

Football

As for the gridiron, there had been zero flash nor substance up until the arrival of Barry Odom in 2023.

Prior to Odom, UNLV had appeared in four bowl games over the course of their Division One existence - dating back to 1978.

With football, it has only been in the last two years that fans have continually showed up to Allegiant Stadium and supported pair of teams that were historically great by UNLV standards.

Last season was their first 10+ win campaign in D1 program history and with a different result against Boise State in the Mountain West title game, they could have turned a great season into a magical one with a potential trip to the College Football Playoff.

Alas, not everything comes in one fell swoop.

But with this unprecedented success, it took no time for the vultures that are P4 programs to circle Las Vegas and snatch up Odom.

Purdue won the bidding war for his services.

How did UNLV rebound after losing its best coach?

By hiring a former SEC “big-time” head man from the Florida Gators and the Mississippi State Bulldogs - Dan Mullen.

Mullen had spent the last few years in the booth at ESPN in a studio role and as a color analyst.

There is no doubt that he could maintain the growth of the Rebel program and keep it on track, moving towards a new identity of highly competitive consistency in a revamped league - assuming nothing earth-shattering happens with the Pac-12.

Is that a guarantee?

Far from it.

For Group of Five programs, it is extremely difficult to reach the high bar that is winning 10+ games year in and year out.

Appalachian State had a run.

So did Liberty.

And the American schools of old in Cincinnati, Houston, and UCF all traded turns being the king of the conference.

Was Barry Odom’s two-year dream tenure a mirage or a sign of UNLV football revealing its true potential?

One stat sticks to me.

In two years, Barry Odom won 20 games.

Marcus Arroyo...seven games in three years.

Tony Sanchez...20 games in five years.

Bobby Hauck...15 games in five years.

Mike Sanford Sr. - 16 games in five years.

That is the 20-year history that UNLV has to face - like it or not.

Let the chips fall where they may...